NFL
By: Ty Reeves
Jordan Poole has risen to NBA stardom with the Warriors this season, being labeled as one of the most improved players. The third-year guard is averaging a career-high 16.7 ppg while shooting 90% from the free-throw line. Poole has proven that he belongs in the NBA, but it wasn’t always this way for the sharpshooter.
Poole was a guard from Milwaukee, Wisconsin who committed to play basketball at the University of Michigan early on in his high school career. From there he knocked in one of the greatest shots in March Madness history, hitting a buzzer-beater three to lift the Wolverines over Houston to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. The team would advance all the way to the national championship, but fell short losing to Villanova.
Jordan Poole. Gets. Buckets. 🏀
Game-winner avec Michigan vs. la fac de Houston pendant la March Madness 2018 🔥
— Warriors Luxembourg (@LuxWarriors) March 17, 2021
Poole returned for his sophomore season and took on a bigger role, not only off the court but on. He became one of the focal points in the Michigan offense, averaging 12.8 ppg. His play throughout the season caught the eyes of NBA scouts and he declared for the NBA draft at the end of the season. Even with his improved play, Poole was not a certified first-round pick in many analysts eyes.
The 6’4” shooting guard would go on to get drafted with the 28th pick in the first round by arguably the best franchise over the past decade, the Warriors. Golden State was fresh of a loss to the Toronto Raptors in the finals. With Klay Thompson injured and Kevin Durant’s future uncertain, it seemed like a perfect fit for both parties, but Pooles rookie year was a struggle for both the team and himself.
The Warriors finished last in the western conference with a 15-50 record. The team basically played the entire season without former MVP Steph Curry and Thompson recovering from ACL surgery. Poole also struggled the entire season, averaging 8.8 ppg with a 33% field goal percentage while shooting under 30% from downtown. Not what you want to see from your first-round pick.
His second year in the league was far from normal as the world was dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. However, we saw an improved version of Poole. He would spend time in both the G-league and the NBA bubble that season. In 11 games in the G-League bubble, he would average close to 23 ppg for the Santa Cruz Warriors. He would then return to the Warriors and average 12 ppg, an improvement from the season before. Poole even scored a career-high 38 points against the Pelicans.
Now in his third season, Poole has risen to NBA stardom and has proven he can be one of the most potent scorers in the NBA on any given night. To start the 2021-2022 season, Poole scored 30 points against the Trail Blazers to show everyone he means business. He would continue to play at the top of his game until he entered health and safety protocols at the end of December. Poole would miss six games for the Warriors quarantining for ten days. After his return, he didn’t play right away, and soon after we saw the return of Klay Thompson.
Since Thompson’s return, Poole has taken up a new role, coming off the bench to provide the new look Warriors with a scoring punch. With the Warriors competing for the number one seed in the West, perhaps Poole can take home both the Sixth-Man of the Year award and maybe even Most Improved Player. Only time will tell for Deadpool as he’s turning into a premier scorer right in front of our eyes.
JORDAN POOLE DROPPED JORDAN CLARKSON 😳
Peep Clarkson's face 😅 pic.twitter.com/I0LzUpkXRt
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 24, 2022
